Photos | BLOG

The Sea Gypsy

10/05/2016 by nikkokarki

“This is Madu of the Bajo tribe. His name means honey.” I shot this footage about a year ago around the Taka Bonerate atoll. Madu is a Bajo tribesman. He’s completely self-sufficient in his element with minimal effort. I didn’t know what to do with this footage. Then Camilla asked me if the reason I liked Madu so much was because that’s who I want to be when I grow up. I didn’t think about it that way but it […]

Categories: Artist Portraits, Photos, Travel, Videos • Tags: bajo, documentary, Indonesia, Video

Black and White Komodo Landscapes

18/01/2016 by nikkokarki

“After a dive I like to look up at the rock formations and trace the ridges below the surface. The lines are related to the underwater topography, but we seldom see the connections.” For some reason, one day, I decided to shoot with black and white film. All shot from a boat, I was shooting continuous perspectives from the water where the landscape rises from the shoreline. When I was done, I started to see similarities in the rock formations. […]

Categories: Art, Photos, Travel • Tags: anonyme skulpturen, Art, becher, Diving, field trips, film, Flores, Hasselblad, Indonesia, Komodo, Street photography, Travel, Zeiss

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Island landscapes and enjoying photography

13/12/2015 by nikkokarki

“I realized photography was just plain fun. So I kept doing more of it.” After all, the success of a personal project hinges on how enjoyable it is. Part of the fun for me is using medium format film. I like the process of loading the old camera. I like the thump the manual shutter makes and I’m happy with how the images look right out of the scanner. Then there’s the undeniable fact that to take better pictures, one […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: film, Flores, Hasselblad, Indonesia, Komodo, Travel, Zeiss

Southern Komodo & Swimming Dragons

01/12/2015 by nikkokarki

“Some people don’t believe the dragons swim. It’s rare, but they do, which can be useful information if you’re in the water.” On the southern edge of the Komodo National Park, the archipelago comes to a jagged halt of rock and cliffs facing the ocean and eventually, Australia. The weather is unpredictable with ripping currents turning boats around and storms can rise in an instant. The waters are too rough most of the year but calm down some in the […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: adventure, boating, Canon, Diving, dragon, film, fishing, Flores, Indonesia, Komodo, padi, Portra, sailing, Zeiss

Pulau Kalao – a Boat Builder’s Paradise

04/07/2015 by nikkokarki

“One camera, one roll of film and an intensely beautiful place. We had been island hopping for over a week at this point. After spending most of the day spearfishing near a drop off in bright, turquoise waters, I was interested in seeing the small village on this island. Only Romain, Etienne and I went ashore. I decided to take one roll of film with just one camera and a 50mm lens. Prau boat building village on Pulau Kalao Key […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: boat builder, Indonesia, pulau kalao

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1,000 km Through the Indonesian Archipelago

04/07/2015 by nikkokarki

“When I first stepped aboard the Royal Fortuna, she was mid-way through a yearly re-fit, stripped down to the wood. I thought, yes, I could live here, on this boat, and be happy.” On this trip, we sailed a bit over 1,000 km through waters largely ignored by charters, partly because years ago dynamite fishing was rampant and lore of an occasional pirate. We found natural beauty, uncharted dive sites and welcoming islanders living in clear waters plentiful with fish. […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: Bali, boat, Diving, fishing, Flores, Indonesia, Komodo, Photography, royal fortuna, spearing, sulawesi, taka bonerate

Thailand-Myanmar Border Region Hill Tribes

04/07/2015 by nikkokarki

“On a red dirt road without cell coverage along the Burmese border, I went through a swarm of bees, one flew in my helmet and stung me in the face. I thought, this may not have been the best idea.” Using Chiang Mai, Thailand as a base, I spent five weeks on a few video projects, then took some time off to do a personal project photographing hill tribes. A motorcycle is the best way to get around, taking full advantage of […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: 35mm, akha, akha tribe, analog, chiang mai, chiang rai, film, Hasselblad, hill tribe, karen, karen tribe, kawasaki, motorcycle, Myanmar, Portrait, Portraits, Road Trip, thailand, Travel

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Muzzaswell – Uluwatu, Bali

04/07/2015 by nikkokarki

“Anyone who’s ever surfed a cyclone swell will understand that with a common name comes unity. It gives total strangers something in common. We may all be out there surfing but when we realize we’re surfing the same swell it brings a bit of brotherhood into the game.” Before the swell had struck any coastline in Indonesia it already had a name: the ‘Muzza swell’. The moniker was an honorific to Murray Close, Australian surfer and expat who succumbed to cancer on […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: Bali, muzzaswell, Padang Padang, Surfing, swell, uluwatu

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Balinese Trance Ceremony

24/03/2015 by nikkokarki

“Witnessing trance isn’t an every day occurrence but in the realm of the ceremony and the sacrifices performed it seemed totally normal.” Around 6PM at the beach I stumbled upon a ceremony. People were in deep trance, some requiring restraint, others convulsing less violently. In the near distance, surfers went upon their usual business of ocean worshipping in a different fashion. Two birds were beheaded after ceremonial rituals followed by people cleansing in the ocean. Before long it was all […]

Categories: Photos, Travel • Tags: Bali, batu bolong, ceremony, Indonesia, trance

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Exploring North Bali’s National Parks

16/02/2015 by nikkokarki

“There’s no one here. It’s perfect.” Bali’s a small island but the roads and topography make traversing terrain slow. However the contrast between the south and north ends of the island could not be starker. After a four-hour drive we had only covered about 60km but had seemingly gone back in time. Downtown Pemuteran, as we joked, is nothing but simple bungalows lining the beach. Nestled at the foot of a steeply rising mountain range, life goes on unaffected by […]

Categories: Photos, Travel

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Bali Snapshots

15/02/2015 by nikkokarki

“Simple pleasures.” For a good time: A Canon EOS1V, a Zeiss 50mm Makro Planar f/2 and a roll of Kodak Portra 400. -NK (These next ones are with the Zeiss 135mm f/2)

Categories: Photos, Travel

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Recently Published Photos

13/02/2015 by nikkokarki

“Most of these shots were in a bag of undeveloped film I forgot in a hotel lobby in Bangkok. For a good couple hours, I had to live with the thought that all my film from Myanmar had been lost.” Photos published include one of Myanmar Presidential Candidate Madam Aung San Suu Kyi, as well as some of my favorite portraits. Traveling to Myanmar was a highlight of my life, but after ten days of training with hardened boxers, and […]

Categories: Photos, Travel, Writing • Tags: Bali, Canon, Hasselblad, Magazine, Myanmar, photo editor, Photos, Portra, Portrait, Published, Travel, Zeiss

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Category Archives: Photos

The Sea Gypsy

Black and White Komodo Landscapes

Island landscapes and enjoying photography

Southern Komodo & Swimming Dragons

Pulau Kalao – a Boat Builder’s Paradise

1,000 km Through the Indonesian Archipelago

Thailand-Myanmar Border Region Hill Tribes

Muzzaswell – Uluwatu, Bali

Balinese Trance Ceremony

Exploring North Bali’s National Parks

Bali Snapshots

Recently Published Photos